Health Disparity in Cardiometabolic Disorders and Association with Social Support among Minority Populations in Pennsylvania

Objective: Cardiometabolic (CM) disorders play a pivotal role in population health. We aimed at examining racial/ethnic differences in CM disorders and their relationship to social support and health behaviors using data of the 2007 Pennsylvania Behavior Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS).

Methods: CM disorders includes (a) BMI>=30 kg/m2, and medical history of (b) serum dyslipidemia, (c) hypertension, (d) coronary heart disease, (e) stroke and (f) diabetes. Subjects with one or more of the six were defined having CM disorder. CM scores were estimated using the sum of the present of the CM disorders. Statistical techniques for the complex sampling designs of the BRFSS were used to estimate prevalence of CM disorder at the State level.

Results: The study includes a sample of 12,629 participants age>=18 years. Prevalence of subjects with self-rated “fair” or “poor” health status were significantly higher among Hispanic (H: 23.6%), followed by African Americans (AA: 20.8%) and White (W: 13.9%), (race diff.: p<0.001). AA had significantly higher mean CM disorder scores (3.23), followed by H (2.83), and W (2.72), (p<0.001). H had significantly higher percentage (29.9%) for less commonly receiving social and emotional support they needed, followed by AA (28.8%) and W (19.1%), (p<0.001). Multivariate adjusted logistic regression analyses indicate that subjects with lower education levels, unhealthy lifestyles and lack of social support were significantly associated with increased prevalence of CM disorders and increased CM disorder scores. Conclusion: Health disparity in CM disorders can be reduced by enhancing social and emotional support and improvement of healthy behaviors.